Presenting a Potential Bus Rapid Transit Line with GIS, Analytical Models and 3D Visualization

Cincinnati is a typical American city where private automobiles are the primary means of transportation. It is not hard to envision the future of serious traffic tie-ups. Adequate mobility is a key factor for improving the residents’ life quality and consequently the prospects for economic development. The two options are 1) adding more highways and 2) improving mass transit. Within this context, this paper presents a study that uses information technologies to help explore if a mass transit can be a valid alternative for Cincinnati. In particular, the research team explores the effect of a potential Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Although BRT has been implemented in many cities around the world, it has not been proposed in this region. To help people understand the impact of a BRT the research team uses a combination of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), simulation models (SM) and 3-dimensional visualization (VIS) to present the current and future scenarios related to a potential BRT along a previously proposed bus line in terms of traffic flow and air pollution related to automobile emissions. The value of such a system as an information communication tool in planning processes is discussed from its spatial, temporal and visual realistic aspects.